The weekend before last was quite eventful. On Saturday morning I made a trek down to Smokey Point for a wonderful dance workshop with Dalia Carella. She showed us how to use fans and the Spanish shawl with style. That woman really moves with amazing grace and I loved the way the dance looked. Also, her warm-up was super fun and I really enjoyed her enthusiasm.
Then on Sunday, Chris and I decided to check out the Penn Cove Mussel Festival. It was fairly small for a Coupeville festival, but there was live music and, best of all, mussels.
These were from Christopher’s and made with an amazing salmon sauce. They were so delicious I had to try the mussels from next door at Bay Leaf. Seriously. Amazing. They were cooked in a lime, garlic, ginger sauce with their screamin’ banshee bread. I didn’t get any pictures of those—they were eaten too quickly.
I’m in Texas all week. Sprout and I are visiting family and friends and we miss Chris terribly.
Since week 20, it seems like the weeks are going by quickly. Perhaps the impending sugar cut-off this week is what made the last six-weeks fly by. You see, my mid-wife recommended that I cut excess sugar from my diet around the 26th week of gestation. At this point in the pregnancy, she explained any extra sugar I consume will basically funnel right into the baby and could make him bigger. And since I’d like to delivery naturally, I’m aiming for a six or seven pounder.
Thus, my discovery—time flies when you are shoveling cookies hand-over fist into your mouth. I mean, as long as it’s going to my thighs and not his, I figured I better enjoy. So, I ate many cookies over the last few weeks as the deadline loomed, but I tried to keep my diet balanced—so I ate plenty of cheese as well.
I jest (I gest). Truly, Chris has done a wonderful job of helping me out, reminding me to eat my vegetables. I’ve discovered roasted veggies with the right seasoning can be almost as pleasurable as brownies. Okay, I almost believed it as I typed that out. But really, roasted, those little green trees are quite delicious.
So far, I’ve gained 11 pounds across the whole pregnancy. Not too shabby, but here we are at week 26 and I must bid farewell to my daily cookie. I’m on my third day of sugar reduction and I think I’m finally starting to come out of the haze. It figures that Easter candy would suddenly fill my every waking thought. Mmmm, jelly beans.
But nay, I can do this. It’s for the kiddo and that’s really much more important than any sugar-coated confection from a giant bunny that poops chocolate covered eggs.
He said: I don’t know.
She said: Maybe there’s nothing to know.
He said: Maybe there is everything to know.
She said: Maybe everything is known, it’s just a matter of remembering.
He said: I don’t know…
This is not an unusual conversation between my husband and myself. Just another of the hundreds, nay thousands, of reasons we are perfect for each other. We like to talk about stuff, even when it’s really nothing.
Oh Leachco Snoogle Loop Contoured Fit Body Pillow, when we first met I was skeptical. As a dyed-in-the-wool back sleeper, I just could believe that a pillow would make sleeping on my side more comfortable than sleeping on my back. I’ve met other body pillows and it just didn’t seem likely. But I was willing to give you a try, as my belly is growing and slumber eluded my regular sleeping positions.
Alas, dear pillow, if I had only known! I’m cushioned and cradled and I sleep better than (dare I say it) ever before in my life. I know, I know, it’s a bold statement but I wake up feeling great. Inspired. Transcendent. My body doesn’t ache and as I stretch out to begin my day I feel that much more hopeful. It’s true; a pillow has given me hope.
I like to call you my nest. Chris calls you my life boat. Either way, it’s all true. While my husbands arms are by-far the number 1 most comfortable place in the world, you dear pillow are an exceptional 2nd place. Superior only in that you do not complain when I am fidgety.
I am so enamored dear Snoogle that I am tempted to bring into the house your cousin, the Back ‘N Belly Contoured Body Pillow. Not that I would abandon you, but only give you a night off now and again.
Thank you Snoogle. Thank you Leacho*. Never a pillow so wonderful did I ever meet.
When someone gets pregnant in a movie we see something like this:
Scene 1: Woman runs in to the room flushed and happy waving her magic EPT wand and everyone rejoices.
Scene 2: Woman pukes a bit, wipes her mouth and then smiles lovingly up at her partner.
Scene 3: We see the woman and man decorating a nursery. She has a cute bump, but not too big yet.
Scene 4: The woman is so enormous she can barely stand up and she and her baby daddy totter off to the hospital for a nice delivery (where something extreme will happen and everyone will freak out but in the end work out just fine).
Now, I’m a grown woman and I know that things do not happen the way they are portrayed at the theater. I mean who wants to watch a movie with nine-months of the realities of pregnancy? That just doesn’t make good entertainment. And yet, I find I have these subtle expectations that are being smashed to bits by reality.
For example, today was my weigh in day. So far, I’ve gained 1 pound and 0 inches (I’m not complaining by the way, just an example). I have a small bump; however, you can’t really tell because I had the same bump pre-pregnancy (only before it was filled with things like cheese and fries instead of baby and cookies). The difference now is it is a hard bump instead of the squishy (tee-hee) quality it usually has. So, I don’t really look pregnant yet.
My subtle expectation is that I will wake up one morning and have ballooned in weight and size. I’ve been told this is true; however, I thought it was going to happen a few weeks ago around mid-week 15. My expectations are wrong. It takes a long time to grow a baby, like months! (duh, I know.)
I’m mid-17 weeks and I keep reminding myself to savor each moment. But honestly, I can’t wait until I have a cute bump and can feel the sprout kicking—any day now. For now, it’s dry toast and water to alleviate that morning sickness that didn’t magically disappear after 14 weeks. Oh the harsh realities!
No, I don’t want to start fresh in 2010. Eh, I’ll pass on the goals setting (and the best applications to track them). Bah, I’m just not interesting in the whole New-Year resolution thing this year. Maybe it’s because I’m pregnant (and pregnant women are smug*) and it just doesn’t seem that important. I’m growing a person! Isn’t that enough?
This is all a bit tongue in cheek. I’ve been seeing a lot of articles about setting goals and keeping resolutions. Normally, I love stuff like that (any time of the year), but for now I just shrug and move on to something else.
That’s not to say I don’t have areas I’d like to improve. I just don’t feel like over thinking and planning and reading articles and tracking it and poking it and prodding it—a significant transition over my pre-pregnancy self. I just feel more relaxed about it all.
So, here are a few things I’m not thinking about, but doing as I progress through my 2nd and 3rd trimester:
Cut back on (or eliminate) sugar from my diet.
Eat more vegetables.
Walk outdoors more.
Keep the house clean more consistently.
Keep growing the sprout.
That’s it. I’m not going to make a chart with gold stars or find an application for my phone to help me keep these new habits–I’m just going to do them.
*Reference to this a little musical ode to pregnancy. Enjoy!
(Warning: one bad word for those who have sensitive ears.)
It’s 2010 and I couldn’t happier. Many wonderful things happened in 2009 (married my best friend, and got pregnant) but it was a tough year (step-dad went through cancer treatment, my pay was cut and my hours increased). I’m looking forward to a new year. And though I am optimistic every year, I do feel that things are on the up swing (my step-father’s cancer is gone, my job is stable, and we are having a baby in June!) 2009, farewell, you were a year of change as promised.
I normally write a long post recapping my year; however, this year I’m going to let that previous paragraph stand as my recap. If you’ve come over from Living Juicy, welcome. This post is somewhat of a duplicate to announce my intentions to begin blogging about family on this site, which was originally designed to provide information about our wedding. For those who know this site from the wedding plans, hope you’ll keep reading as we change formats a bit. I will keep living juicy as a portfolio blog for those creative endeavors I’d like to show off.
This blog will undergo some design changes in the near future and the content will be updated more regularly. I will write about things that I cook (because I love to cook), and things that we do, and ways I am preparing to help this family expand. Does that sound interesting? If so, come along and don’t mind the mess as I rearrange and reconfigure both blogs to fit their new purpose. I hope you all had a wonderful holiday season, now let’s get on with the new year!
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Chris and Syd hiking on Christmas day at Bowman Bay, near Deception Pass. Looking forward to the new year.
I didn’t do one of these at the beginning of the year. But I decided I would regret not having it, so I’ve got back and added post new-year. So, while this was written in March, I’m back dating it to January.
January 2009
Wedding planning got kicked into high gear in January. We originally planned on getting married in Washington. Just before the end of the year, we decided a Texas wedding would suit our plans better. I made a trip to Texas and researched many venues finally finding the one and finalizing plans.
Several amazing women threw me a beautiful wedding shower while I was home. It was a lot of fun and really helped me get into the spirit as the wedding approached. I only had time to read one book in January, Little Heathens by Mildred Armstrong Kalish.
We got our rings and our passports on the same day. Again, I was very busy and only had time to read one boo, Off-beat Bride by Ariel Meadow Stallings, who has an awesome Website by the same title that really helped me with planning and staying sane.
March 2009
Chris and I drove to Texas, where I was to stay while he returned to Washington. We were apart for three weeks before the wedding. It was really hard but I was so busy getting everything ready that the time flew by. In fact, I didn’t read a single book all month. It was a little bit crazy, but it all came together. I was really happy when Chris returned at the end of the month, just days away from our wedding day.
I got to keep both of our pets with me in Texas. Here is our cat, Gueny keeping an eye on the dogs in the back yard.
April 2009
Chris and I got married on April 4, 2009. I can’t believe I never wrote a single post about it all. It was a really beautiful day. We had over a hundred people who came, including friends from across the country. Of course, it all went so quickly. My only wish is that I could have slowed the day down to enjoy each and every moment. This makes me realize I should sit down and try to write it all out at some point, just to have those memories in writing.
Our wedding was followed by and amazing honeymoon. We took a cruise, stopping in Honduras, Costa Playa and Cozumel. It was a first for both of us and we are still talking about how much we enjoyed it and wish we were back on the boat. I did manage to finish two books this month: The Boleyn Inheritance by Philippa Gregory and Hayduke Lives! By Catus Ed Abbey.
May 2009
I think I spent the month of May recovering from all the wedding activity. I didn’t blog. Not even once. It was a month of honeymoon. Chris and I spent a lot of time together discovering wedded bliss.
This is from a hike Chris and I took in May. I think a secret creature must live in the hollow of that tree. I read one book this month, A Fool’s Progress by Cactus Ed Edward.
June 2009
Not unlike May, June found us spending a lot of time together. We spent some time exploring the island and working out what it means to be married. I convinced Chris to shave his face and I got to see my husbands face without a beard for the first time. It was our own kind of unveiling.
I read two books in June: Moose by Stephanie Klein, Stephanie and Hood by Stephen Lawhead.
July 2009
In July, Chris and I made a trip back to Montana for a sad occation. Chris Grandma Irwin passed away. I got to finally meet aunts, uncles and cousins I’d only heard about before. My mother-in-law was so happy we could all be there, including my brother-in-law, his wife and our crazy, smart and funny nephews. In the evening, after the funeral, Chris’ aunt and his cousin’s stopped by to visit. By the end of the evening, Chris’ cousin Darby pulled out his guitar and we all gathered around and sang every song we knew. It was a perfect, spontaneous and memorable night. We laughed and sang late into the evening. It was a good day for a funeral, decidedly Irish–only without the whiskey. While we were in Montana, we drove down to Bozeman the day after the funeral and did a bit of house hunting. We got a better grasp on what it would cost to live there and ultimately decided to post-pone our plans to move until we’d saved up a bit more money.
My reading habits really picked up this month with five completed books: Free-Range Chickens by Simon Rich, Simon, Mountain Man Dance Moves: The McSweeney’s Book of Lists, Willful Creatures by Amee Bender, Heart Shaped Box by Joe Hill, Joe and Scarlet by Stephen Lawhead.
I discovered True Blood this month and decided to read the series. Trashy though they may be, I found them un-put-downable and fun. I read 4 books this month: Living Dead in Dallas and Dead Until Dark by Charlaine Harris, The Book of Lost Things by John Connolly and Persuasion by Jane Austen.
September 2009
In September, Chris and I both decided to take a class from the local college. I signed up for anatomy and physiology because I’ve often thought about getting a degree in nursing. While, I still think it would be a good idea if anything ever happened to my writing career, I am not pursing another degree at this time. I did enjoy the class quite a bit and it was fun to be back in school for a while.
We had a lovely fall season. I read two book this month Her Husband: Ted Hughes and Sylvia Plath by Diane Wood Middlebrook and Troll: A Love Story by Johanna Sinisalo. Chris turned 33, and though we didn’t realize at the time, celebrating his birthday resulted in some very big news in our lives.
October 2009
We found out we were going to have a baby on October 7. When my period was late, a few days before, I took a pregnancy test. When it read “Not pregnant” I was disappointed, but chalked it up to stress and my new exercise program. Several days went by including extreme mood swings, light cramping and sore breasts, but no menstruation. Then my sister-in-law announced on Facebook that she was pregnant and I decided to take another test.
I was getting dressed while the test processed, and when I went back to check on it, Chris jumped in the bathroom and locked me out–teasing me. He opened the door after I pleaded and giggled, and said, “What do you want? Oh, it is negative.” “Drat,” I said, “Where is my period?” He smiled really big at me and handed me the test.
It read “Pregnant”.
He opened the door all the way and we hugged and moved out into the living room. I think I said something like, “We did it, Oh boy!” Then I started to weep small tears of joy. Chris and I talked about the good timing and how all the signs were pointing to this event. A few weeks ago before, probably 3 days after conception I talked to my Aunt Georgene who dreamt I was pregnant. We wanted to wait until I was fully twelve weeks to tell people but it was really hard not to shout it from the roof tops.
Also, in October, after finishing Her Husband the month before, I read The Creative Habit: by Twyla Tharp, Twyla and I started feeling a tug on my creative nature. I also read some Mary Oliver poetry. These were superb and I recommend them, especially if you are looking for a creative boost that sounds mostly like “Turn off the distractions and get to work!” Perhaps having the little seed of life in me is part of this new jolt of creativity starting to work its way through my psyche.
November 2009
I was supposed to take a trip to Twisp to visit friends in Washington, but morning sickness kept me close at home. I actually spent a lot of time on my back this month. I started walking a lot when I found out I was pregnant, but the general funk really got to me in November. So, what did I do? I read, a lot! I finished Your Best Birth by Ricki Lake, The Mayo Clinic Guide to a Healthy Pregnancy, It Sucked and Then I Cried by Heather Armstrong, Magical Beginnings, Enchanted Lives by Deepak Chopra, Club Dead, Dead to the World, Dead as a Doornail, Definitely Dead and All Together Dead by Charlaine Harris.
I did reveal the news to my mother and my father and my best friends, but otherwise kept the growing fetus a secret until Thanksgiving. I made this card and sent it out to announce to extended family and friends.
December 2009
We had our first ultrasound early in December. When the Sprout first showed up on the monitor I began to giggle. It was simply unbelievable to me that there is an actual baby in there. But there it is in fuzzy black and white, our little baby.
We also took a trip to Texas between Thanksgiving and Christmas. We got to spend a week with family and friends. And I finished several books this month including Pregnancy, Childbirth And The Newborn by Penny Simkin, Penny, Snow Crash by Neal Stephenson, The Folk of the Air by Peter S Beagle, The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova and Darwinia by Robert Charles Wilson.
In many ways it was a quiet year, but an eventful one as well. I feel my creativity jumpstarted by being pregnant and in January alone I wrote twice as many posts than I did all fall. We are really looking forward to all the new things coming in 2010.
Update: Holy Moly, do you see that list? I set this new feature up and it seems it had to start with pulling every short thought from twitter I’ve had since the beginning of the year. I was going to edit it down to just the last week, but it’s sort of amusing to read. So, click more to read the full list.
Slowly getting back into the good routine that keeps this ship afloat. #
In my youth, I spent my time at the fairgrounds riding any ride that made you dizzy enough to puke and running around with my friends. As a young adult, I spent most of my time in the beer gardens or at the barbecue cook-off. These days, I find my thrills in the exhibit halls. Here are some of my favorite photos from the day.
Betty Davis eyes on the alpaca. They weren’t humming. The girl answering questions said it was because they were separated from their friends. Get the whole story »
He’s from Montana. She’s from Texas. We make our home on an island in the Puget Sound. We got hitched April, 4 2009 and we are having a baby, June 2010. This is a place to share stories and thoughts about our life.
